Sacrificial Lamb
by fantasist0923
Summary: Part of this came to me in a dream after the S4 finale. This is my first fanfic, please read and review.
1. Chapter 1

A cell phone rings. Sam rolls over and sees it's not his but Dean's.

"Dean, wake up man. Your phone's ringing."

"Huh..." Dean rolls over and grabs his phone. "Hello... Yes this is John Wayne." He sits up on the bed. "What? Where? I'll be there as soon as I can." He looks over at Sam who is giving him his confused puppy face. "We gotta go. Bobby's in the hospital."

The boys get dressed, check out, and get in the car in less than 10 minutes. Dean's driving fast. He's in a hurry and this worries Sam. It means Bobby is really hurt. "Um...so what did they say?"

"Who?"

"The hospital, Dean."

"Oh, just that Bobby's there and I'm his emergency contact, so they called."

"Is he okay? What else did they say? What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know."

"Oh, okay." Sam was worried and he knew Dean was worried. Bobby is like family to them. He is all they have left aside from each other.

Dean sees the front desk receptionist and walks straight to her. She's kind of hot he notices, but he's got to time for that, he needs to know how Bobby's doing. "I'm looking for Robert Singer. I got a call that he was here."

The receptionist types into her computer. "He's in room 204. Dr. Mason is taking care of him. His office is right down the hall." She smiles at him, but he hardly notices because he's already turned to head down the hall."

"Thanks," he mumbles as he walks towards the doctor's office.

He knocked lightly on the office door and waited for a response. When he heard a low call come in, he walked in slowly, trying to slow down time. He had a bad feeling about this.

"Um…I'm John Wayne, Robert Singer's emergency contact."

"Oh, yes. What your relation to the patient?"

"I'm a close friend. He's like a father to me." Dean notices Dr. Mason looking at Sam, so he added, "This is my brother."

"I see. Well your friend suffered some pretty serious injuries. It appears he received a blow to the head. He also had internal bleeding. He lost a lot of blood. His body has shut down, he's in a comma."

"Who brought him in?"

"A young lady brought him in. Since she's not his emergency contact I couldn't really talk to her about his condition. She's probably in his room with him now though. Said she thinks someone was trying to break in to the patient's home because she saw a car speeding from the direction of his house."

"Thank you doc. May we go see him now?"

"Sure, if you have any more questions you know where to find me. I'll be by in about and hour or so to check in on him."

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Dean and Sam walked down the hallway to Bobby's room. Upon approaching the room he heard a very familiar voice begging Bobby to wake up. He knew exactly who the young lady that brought Bobby in was and he swore his heart skipped a beat just thinking her name.

Dean took a deep breath and forced himself to walk into the room. Sam followed behind. As they walked in he heard her whispering to Bobby.

"Dad, please wake up. I need you now more than ever. Please wake up."

The young girl sat on a chair right next to the bed where Bobby lay. The brunette sat very still holding Bobby's hand. Dean couldn't help but stare. Suddenly she turned sharply to find him staring. He felt completely consumed by the power of her stare. Her green eyes popping against her olive skin and dark hair.

She gives him a small smile but doesn't lower the intensity of her gaze. "Dean, what are you doing here?"

He smiles back, a small smile, not his patented charming Winchester smile, but a smile none the less. "I could ask you the same thing."

"I was in town visiting Dad and I found him like this. You?"

"I'm his emergency contact."

"Figures."

"What? Did you expect him to use you as an emergency contact? You were the one that said you didn't want this life. You walked out on him, remember. I don't think he relied much on you."

She stood up suddenly, furiously, and walked over to Dean. Her gaze full of anger, "You know nothing about my relationship with my father, so keep your comments to yourself."

With that she went back to her chair, sat down, and grabbed a hold of her father's hand again. She seemed oddly broken to Dean. As if all her energy had been drained and yelling at Dean took what little she had left. Her eyes, which were shooting daggers at him, only a minute ago, were now full of sadness and fear. He wanted to comfort her. Tell her it was gonna be okay. Instead he looked away and left the room.

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Sam followed Dean out of the room.

"Alex is here," Sam said stating the obvious.

"Yea, I saw that."

"Dude, I thought she and Bobby weren't in contact."

"So did I."

"Maybe they've been in contact as of late. I mean she said she came to visit him, maybe he called her. If you think about it, it makes total sense. With the apocalypse and all, he must be worried he might not get to see her again, so he reached out. What do you think?"

Sam had been so busy theorizing that he hadn't noticed Dean wasn't paying attention to him.

"Dean, you here man?"

"Huh…um, yea. We need to figure out who or what attacked Bobby. My guess is it has to do with demons."

"Yea, me too. I wonder if Alex saw something. I'm gonna go get a cup of coffee. You can ask her."

Sam smirked quickly before trotting off down the hall in search of coffee. Dean didn't even have a chance to respond. Well, there was nothing left to do but walk back in. Dean took a deep breath and tried to settle himself.

Come on man. Calm down, it's just Alex. Dean scoffs at his own thoughts. Just Alex. I must be out of my mind. Nothing is ever that simple.

Alexandra Singer is Bobby's daughter. When her mother died and her father became a hunter, she followed in his footsteps for a while, leading the life of a hunter. Her life was more settled than ours since Bobby didn't move around as we did, but he still left a lot on hunts. Like Sam, Alex dreamed of a normal life and so when she turned 20 she left him in search of normalcy. She headed to college in Chicago and never looked back, or so he thought. Alex never refused to believe in the supernatural, she just chose to ignore it. But she was here now. What did that mean?

Ok, you just need to go in there and talk to her. You should probably start by apologizing for earlier.

Dean took another deep breath and opened the door. He stands on the other side of Bobby's bed looking down at him. Alex, who is across from him, looks up at him. They stare at each other in silence for a minute but to Dean it feels like minutes.

"What do you want Dean?"

"Hello to you too." He gives her a slight smirk.

"Hello…." She smiles slightly. "Happy now. What do you want?"

"It's been a long time, Alex. How you been?"

"Who's fault is that?" She stands up.

"Hey!" Dean says raises his hands up, "Let not point fingers."

"Fine…so what do you want?"

"What really happened to your father?"

"I'm not sure. I got there too late."

"Did you see anything or anyone?"

"Well, when I got there, Dad was sprawled out on the floor bleeding all over the place. I ran to him, took him to my car and brought him here. Who would do this to him?"

"Why were you visiting your father?"

"What? Why? Do you think I have something to do with this?" Anger pouring out of her now.

"Of course not. I was just under the impression that you and Bobby weren't speaking. You did walk out on him," Dean replied quietly. He didn't want to upset more than he'd already had.

"That is where you are wrong. I walked out on the supernatural, never on my father. I talk to him every night. I have done so since I left home. I thought it was time I came to see him rather than he coming to see me. Plus, with Lucifer rising and the apocalypse, I thought I should come see him, just in case."

"Did he know you were coming?"

"Yea, I called him when I was close by and he asked me to pick up some food for him. If I'd just gone straight there, maybe he wouldn't be here now." She turned to look at her father.

Alex covered her face and began crying. Dean walked over and put his hand on her shoulder. She turned into him and hugged him. He pulled her close into a comforting hug. He swallowed hard. He didn't like to see her like this.

He pulls back so that he is looking at her face. "It's not your fault." He gave her a slight squeeze. "Sam and I are going to head to Bobby's to see if we can get any clues as to what did this."

"I wanna go too."

"Um you should probably stay here. You're not exactly an expert when it comes to the supernatural."

"I want to go, Dean. I need to find what did this and destroy it limb from limb."

Fire flashed in her eyes. The anger and need for revenge, wiping away the vulnerability of just a few minutes before. Alex had always been someone driven by pure emotion, switching from one mood to the next without any warning at all.

"What if it has no limbs?"

She gave him a small smirk. "Well, I may be no expert in the supernatural, but isn't it yours and Sam's forte?"

"Look, we're gonna find out what this is all about, why Bobby was attacked, but I don't want you to get hurt. Maybe you should stay out of the way."

"Okay."

"Okay? I've known you for over 20 years and you've never just given in. What's the catch?"

She shrugs and smiles, "No catch." She looks towards the door where Sam just got back with three cups of coffee.

Sam gave Dean a cup, and then turned to Alex. "I wasn't sure if you drank coffee or not but I brought you a cup anyways just in case."

"Thanks, Sam." She smiles at him and he blushes a bit. Dean is giving his brother a slightly annoyed look.

"We're going to Bobby's to see if we find anything." Dean walks towards the door, but stops when he realizes Sam isn't following, but watching Alex intently instead. "Dude, get a move on."

Sam jumped as Dean startled him and whispered a see you later to Alex on his way out.


	2. Chapter 2

The car ride to Bobby's was pretty quiet as both boys were lost in thought. At Bobby's Sam went to check out the kitchen/dining room, while Dean checks the den and living room.

"There's sulfur over hear," Sam called.

Dean came over to look. It was sulfur all right, meaning a demon was involved. Ever since Lucifer rose, things have been more difficult for hunters. The sheer number of demons around plus the fact that Lucifer was out and free had everyone on edge. But, there was still no massive attack, from either side. Things were even more difficult for the Winchesters since Dean abandoned, per say, his post fighting with the angels, so now he was being chased by both demons and angels. What if this demon tortured Bobby trying to get Dean's whereabouts? That means that everyone close to him is in danger, Sam, Bobby, Alex.

Alex… How is it that after all these years, you still make me nervous? Maybe, one never forgets their first or something? Man, I remember when she was a tall, scrawny-looking sixteen year-old. She's just as beautiful now as she was then. She was everything I ever wanted, vivacious, smart, funny, caring, kind, and strong. Like mom, she has an aura around her. I won't lose her too. I need to protect her.

"Dude, what are you thinking?" Sam's yell pulls Dean out of his thoughts.

"Umm…nothing."

Squeak.

Sam spins around and whispers to Dean, "Dean did you hear that?"

Dean signals Sam as they split up to check out where the noise came from. As he approaches the front door, Dean sees it is Alex and breathes a sigh of relief.

"Sam, it's only Alex."

She lowered her head slightly as she gave him a small smile. "Hey. I got bored at the hospital and I got hungry so I came to see if you guys wanted to grab a bite."

Dean looked her over for a moment. She looked as though she wanted to say something but couldn't figure out where to start. Since when had it become so difficult for them to simply talk? There was a time he could tell her anything and vice versa. But things got complicated as they always did.

"So do you want to?" She looked at him waiting for his reply. "Dean, I'm talking to you?"

"Huh? Um… yea. I could eat. Sam, come here."

Sam walks over to them. "What's up? Did you find something?"

"No. Alex stopped by to see if we wanted to grab something to eat."

"Oh… yea. I could eat."

Alex laughed while shaking her head. It was like nothing had changed. Sam still looked up to his big brother. He was even taking some of Dean's phrases. She always tried to forget how much she missed them, Dean specially. Times like these always reminded her why. It was so easy to fall back into a routine with them. Just like old times, but things weren't the same. They had changed. She looked up to find them staring at her quizzically.

"What's so funny?" Sam looked slightly amused as he asked her.

"Nothing, just reminiscing, some things never change."

"So you ready to go?" Dean cut in quite abruptly.

"Yea, sure." She couldn't understand his sudden change, but she knew they'd talk about it later. It was long overdue.

They walked outside in silence. When they reached the cars, Alex walked over to her car, while Dean walked over to the impala.

"She looked over to him, "We should take both our cars since you guys are coming back here and I am heading back to the hospital." Just because they had to talk, it didn't mean it had to be right now. They could prolong it for a moment.

"Mind if I ride with you," Sam asked Alex.

"Um, no. Come on. I'll follow you there Dean."

Sam got in Alex's car. Dean turned the engine over in the impala and headed out, Alex followed suite.

"So, you wanna talk or something?"

Sam looked over at her and smile. "Well, yea. I haven't seen you in a long time. Just want to catch up."

"Ok, cool. So how you been?

"Okay, all things considered."

"Right, Dad mentioned something about an apocalypse."

"Yea, Lucifer was freed from hell."

Alex felt a shiver at his words. "Yea I heard." She looked at him them. Worry in her eyes. "How can you sound so cool with it? Lucifer is walking the earth as we speak. Shouldn't you be more panicked or worried or something?" She looked back to the road.

"I am worried. But he is out and now we just need to prepare for what is coming."

"And that is?"

"We don't know. But we're working on it…So, how you been?"

"Blissfully living under a rock in Chicago, but I can't go back to hiding anymore. Dad needs me." She looked at him for just a second before looking back at the road. Without looking at him, she continues, "I've made up my mind. I want to help you guys find what attacked my father and in the fight against Lucifer."

"Are you sure? Hunting is what you ran away from remember?"

"I know, but I can't run any longer."

What could she and Sam be talking about? They better not b e talking about me. Can he ride with her? What kind of questions is that? He better not be trying to put the moves on her. He's not her type anyway. Plus Sam isn't stupid; he remembers the history between Alex and me.

She and I need to have a talk. It's long overdue. He needed to remember to control his temper though. Yes, she had left but he made mistakes too.

And he had a lot to worry about now, with Lucifer out of hell and all. Plus he needed to figure out why the demons attacked Bobby. Nothing really seemed out of place, so they weren't looking for something. What could they have wanted with Bobby? He needs to talk to Castiel, maybe he knows something. He'll have to summon him when they get back to Bobby's.

Castiel was the only Angel on Dean's side. He understands why Dean walked away from the rest of them, and he felt Dean was right. Yet, he too was being hunted by the angels now and so he hid out a lot. Dean felt a little guilty but he and Castiel had both made their decisions knowing full well the consequences.

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At the diner, they picked a booth to sit in. Alex sat next to Sam and began perusing the menu. She looked up at the boys as she put down the menu, "I don't know why I waste my time looking at these things. I order the same thing at every diner."

"Bacon cheeseburger, fries, and a soda." Deans smiled at her. "I guess some things really never change."

"You're right. Some things don't."

She looks over at Dean, but he isn't looking at her. As she looks down, Dean looks up at her. Sam noticing their exchange decides he's going to give them some space. "Hey Alex, can you let me out, I gotta go to the bathroom?"

"Sure," She gets up to let him out, and sits back down once he does. Sam absence leaves a silence at the table, as Alex and Dean stare at each other, not saying anything, but still conveying so much.

Alex breaks the silence first, "We need to take some time to talk, just you and me."

"Yea, I know."

"So, I was thinking I'd come back to the house tonight. We could talk then."

"Um okay, sounds good."

They looked at each other uncomfortably for a moment, both dreading the conversation that awaited them, but looking forward to it at the same time because it would be the first time they'd be alone together in a long time.

"I told Sam already, but I'll mention it to you too. I've decided that I want to help hunt down the demon that attacked my father. I also want to help with the Lucifer situation."

Dean stared at her in shock. "Don't you have to go back to Chicago, to your life and your job?"

"Um, actually, I came here with the intention of not going back to Chicago. I have nothing to go back to."

"What do you mean? I thought you said you were here visiting Bobby?"

"Visiting…moving in with…same thing. Well, not technically moving in with, because I'd obviously ask first if it was okay for me to stay there, if not I would have found a place of my own."

"So, you were planning to move back home? Why?"

"I miss it. I miss Dad." She looked down, so as not to let him see the tears that were starting to fill her eyes. "He needs to be okay."

He reached out across the table and took her hand in his. He looked her right in the eyes, "He will be." At the moment he wanted nothing more than to hold her in his arms and comfort her.

She let go of his hand and wiped her eyes when she saw Sam heading back to the table. He was walking with a tall, handsome guy. The man looked rather serious with his tight mouth and trench coat.

"Look who I found," Sam said as he sat down next to Alex. The man sat next to Dean.

"Castiel, what's going on?" Dean turned to look at him waiting for his response.

"Hello, nice to see you too Dean," Castiel said giving Dean a look. "We need to talk in private."

He turned away from Dean and stared at Alex. He focused in on her and it seemed as if he was reading her. She became uncomfortable and looked away, but could still feel him looking at her.

"Okay, let's go outside?" Dean had cut into Castiel's focus.

Dean and Castiel got up and headed outside, while Sam and Alex where left confused and wondering what's going on.


	3. Chapter 3

"So what's going on Cas?"

"That girl…how do you know her?" Dean noticed the worried look on Castiel's face.

"Alex? We've known her since we were kids. She's Bobby's daughter." Dean looked at Castiel questioningly. "Why?"

"She's has a strong presence…are you too involved?"

"What? Why do you ask?" Dean look confused. He had no idea what Castiel was getting at.

"I found out why Lucifer hasn't been around causing chaos. Yes he has risen, but he is in a weaken state. Apparently he needs the blood of a human sacrifice to regain his strength. It's some sort of ritual."

"So, what's he waiting for? I'm sure the demons would gladly find him a sacrifice."

Castiel stood shifting his weight from right to left and looking at the ground rather then at Dean.

"Cas?"

"In order for Lucifer to regain his full strength and power, he needs a special sacrifice. Any old person won't do. Originally, that person was suppose to be Sam. According to the ritual, love is the most powerful thing in the world. Since the love you and your brother share is unbreakable, it will make for a greater sacrifice if Sam's blood is used, making him stronger when he is filled with that love."

Dean's eyes widen as Castiel's words sunk in. He opened his mouth to speak but when the words didn't come out he close it again. He looked at Castiel hoping what he was thinking wasn't true.

"Wait, you said originally. Has the planned changed."?

"Well," Cas began looking back into the dinner. They both could see Sam and Alex talking inside. Suddenly Dean turned green, as if he were going to puke.

"Your not serious. They can't know."

"Dean, I don't know how they found out. Apparently the love you and Alex share is stronger in some ways than the love you and your brother share. You and Sam are brothers, family; you're expected to love each other. But you and Sam chose to love each other. It seems a decade apart did nothing to change that." He gave a slight shrug and looked down again. When he looked up at Dean again, Dean was looking at Alex inside. "You should tell her Dean. She has the right to know."

Dean looked Castiel in the eyes now, "Yea, cause 'I love you. By the way, Lucifer needs your blood to regain his strength, so demons will be hunting you. Oh and this is why your father was attacked; they were looking for you.' will go over well. I can't tell her. I don't know how."

"She needs to be guarded. Without her, he remains weakened, giving us a chance to figure out what to do next, so you have to tell her. It'll be easier to protect her."

"I know." Dean and Castiel looked at each other for a second before Dean turned back towards the diner. "See ya, Cas."

With that Castiel left and Dean headed back inside. He walked slowly back to the table. As he approached them, he could here her and Sam laughing. I need to protect you now. Your life is in my hands. I promise I won't let you down.

"Hey, did you guys order yet?" Dean sat and they both looked at him waiting for more.

When he didn't answer, Alex responded, "Yea. I ordered you the same as myself. Hope that's ok."

"Yea, it's fine. Thanks."

They ate while reminiscing about the past. However, when they were getting ready to leave, Dean told Sam to go back to the hospital with Alex. Sam looked at him questioningly but Dean said he had somewhere to go. Dean headed for the Impala and drove away. Sam had no choice now but go with Alex. He didn't go to the hospital though; she dropped him off at Bobby's where he waited for Dean.

She sat on the steps of the front porch of her father's house.

I can't stay out here all night though, I have to go in there and talk to Dean. But I don't want to, it's too hard. There is so much history there. I mean, we both have reasons to be angry. I just up and left because I didn't want any part of the hunting lifestyle. He apparently thought it was a phase. When it didn't seem to be just a phase his visits and phone calls became less frequent and then there were none.

The door opened behind her and she gave a slight jump. She turned around slowly and saw that it was Dean.

"Hey, what are you doing sitting out here?"

"Do you really need to ask?"

"Oh right. This is your thinking spot. I remember all the hours we spent here growing up. Thinking…most of the time anyways."

She gave a little chuckle and smiled as she looked back on those moments. "Yea, the good old days. Life was less complicated then."

"You're telling me."

She shifted uncomfortably, and then said, "So we're alone now. I guess now is as good a time as any to talk. We have some things to discuss."

"We do. You wanna go first."

She laughed at this. It reminded her of their teen years, when he always made her start, never willing to put his feelings out there without knowing how she felt first. "Sure." She paused for a moment as she wondered where to start. She took a deep breath and looked out into the lot full of broken down cars. She felt him sit next to her.

"I tried calling you several times when your dad died." She didn't look at him as she spoke, just kept looking at the dark lot. She continued before he could interrupt her. "You never answered or call me back. I left you a message. I know how much your dad meant to you, and I wanted to give you my support, but you made that a little hard."

She took another deep breath. "And I know that when I left things weren't the same. You were pissed at me for taking off. And that you thought when I said I didn't want any part of the supernatural, it meant I didn't want you either. But that's not the case Dean. You know that, don't you?"

She turned to him then, "You can see it when you look in my eyes, can't you?" The look in her eyes was a mixture of pleading and sadness. "Dean, you can, can't you."

When he didn't answer, she got up and squatted in front of him and took his face in her hands. "I, Alexandra Singer, love you, Dean Winchester. Always have and you know it. Now say it back!"

"I really wished you hadn't said the Alex." He took her hands away from his face and got up. Alex stayed in her same position looking up at him with hurt and confused eyes. He could see the tears beginning to fill her eyes, but she turned away from him. He didn't want to hurt her.

"It's just that I found something out today that will change our lives forever," he continued. She turned to look at him again. "Castiel, the guy today from lunch, well he's an angel. Well, kind of because he sort of, chose to go against the other angels when he helped me…it's a long story. Anyway, he was looking into why Lucifer and the demons haven't started anything. And well he found out that Lucifer is in a weaken state. In order for him to regain his strength and power, a ritual sacrifice must be performed."

"I don't get it. He could have gotten a sacrifice a long time ago. He's been out for 3 weeks now. What's he waiting for?" She looked at him confused once again.

"Well it turns out that in order for Lucifer to regain his full strength and power, he needs a special sacrifice. Any old person won't do. According to the ritual, love is the most powerful thing in the world. Lucifer therefore wants someone that the man who broke the first seal loves. And this person must love him back because it makes their bond stronger and more powerful. So since I broke the first seal, originally Lucifer's minions were to hunt down Sam." He looked at her waiting for a reaction.

"Oh my god." She looked at him with compassion. "Well don't worry I will help you protect Sam." She gave him a small smile. Then she looked confused again. "Wait a minute, you said originally. Did something change?"

He could see she was looking at him expectantly, but he didn't know how to go on. He just knew that he must and so he did. "Don't you see, if love is the most powerful thing, the stronger the love the more power he gets. And who do you think they'd feel I'd have a stronger love for than Sam?"

"Oh... right usually the bond or love between a couple is stronger than family because you chose to love." She said it so casually. Her voice calm, no fear in her eyes.

"Don't you see that I've put you in danger, Alex?" He looked away from her then. The thought of anything happening to her repulsing him.

"Dean, this is not your fault. I love you too. Otherwise, it wouldn't matter that you loved me." She got up and took his hands in hers.

"Still." The look of guilt on his face said it all.

Her eyes widened then and her look was one of horror, "Oh my god! The demons, they were looking for me. This is why they hurt him, because of me." Tears began to fall down her face. She ran past Dean into the house, up the stairs and into her old bedroom.

Sam walked out into the hallway after hearing the commotion. He gave Dean a questioning look as Dean began to follow after her.

"I told her," he said calmly to Sam. He walked past him and headed upstairs after Alex.

"Alex, I'm coming in."

He opened the door and saw her curled up on her bed. He went over and sat on the bed next to her.

"I know this is a lot to take in, but blaming yourself won't change anything. Your dad taught you to be stronger than this."

"I know. But he sent me to get ice cream, which I thought was weird but I went anyways. Had I not gone, I would have been here when the demons came. He knew something was up and he stalled me."

"He just wanted to protect you. He's gonna be okay, so don't worry about it." He gave her a small smile.

She looked up at him and shrugged. Her voice was groggy from crying. "We talk every day. Did you know that?"

"No, I didn't," he said.

"Yep, every night. Sometimes for just 5 minutes to say goodnight, but most of the time, we talked longer. It's how we kept in touch. His voice was comforting, brought back home. Him saying goodnight, felt like when he used to tuck me in as a kid."

He pulled her to him and held her then. Whispered that everything was gonna be okay. She looked up at him, and kissed him. As he kissed her back, she pulled him down into the bed with her.

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The next morning when he woke up, Dean realized Alex wasn't next to him. He put on clothes and headed downstairs. Upon entering the kitchen he saw Sam sitting at the table. Alex turned to look at him and smiled.

"See Sam, I told you. The smell of bacon would wake him up." Alex and Sam laughed, as Dean smiled at her and took a seat next to Sam. Alex walked over with a cup of coffee for him. "Good morning handsome. Chocolate chip pancakes or plain old buttermilk."

"Chocolate Chip please," Dean responded with a smile.

"Coming right up." She put a plate with eggs and bacon in front of him. "Eat!"

"Why aren't you eating?'

"I am eating, just eating while cooking. We gotta hurry up. I want to go back to the hospital and see how dad's doing."

A few minutes later she was placing a large stack of chocolate chip pancakes in the middle of the table. "Dig in boys." Sam and Dean both helped themselves. After they ate, Dean went upstairs to shower, while Sa m helps Alex with the dishes.

"Sam, is that your phone ringing in the living room?" The ring could only be slightly heard.

"No, that's Dean's. I'll go get it." He dried his hands and headed for the living room.

Alex could hear Sam talking from the living room as she began putting the dishes away. Her mind drifted to her father.

Maybe I'll get some good news today and he'll have woken up. She sighed. But how do I tell him the reason for his attack. He must know they were looking for me or he wouldn't have stalled my arrival. But did he know the reason why they were looking for me. That I am the "sacrificial lamb" Lucifer needs to regain his strength. How do I tell him that? I can see the upcoming fight with Dean already. Dad was never too happy that we were, well we were never technically anything, but regardless Dad didn't like it. "Danger and trouble follows the Winchester men, you can't get to close or it will follow you too," he always said, and now I would have to prove him right.

But he let himself get close. He's like a father or uncle to Sam and Dean. His boys he calls them. He's been there for them more than anyone else since their father died. If he couldn't let them go, how did he expect her to?

"Hey Alex, that was the hospital. Bobby just woke up." Sam came into the kitchen and interrupted her thoughts.

"That's great! I gotta go… right now… to see him." She was running around to the living room and back to the kitchen gathering her things. "Wait for Dean. I'm gonna go and you guys can meet me there. Bye Sam," she yelled as she ran out the door. Less than a minute later, he heard her car engine turn over and her car screech out of the lot.

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When Dean came downstairs, Sam couldn't help but laugh at him. 'Dude-," Sam began with another chuckle.

"What?"

"You blow dried your hair?"

"Her blow dyer was there, so I figured, why not?" He looked around then, "Where's Alex?"

"Oh the hospital called while you were in the shower. Bobby woke up. She left like 10 minutes ago. Here's your phone." Sam handed Dean his phone, and grabbed his jacket. "Let's go then."

Dean followed Sam out the door. He climbed into the Impala, turned the engine over and drove out the lot. Dean knew he was smiling like an idiot but he couldn't help it. Once on the road, he could feel Sam looking at him, giving him that goofy puppy smile.

"What, dude?"

Sam laughed, "Nothing." He laughed again when he saw Dean's eyebrows furrow with annoyance.

'What's so funny, Sam?" The frustration was clear in Dean's voice.

"It's not really funny, just amusing." Sam smiled at Dean, who looked not at all amused.

"What's amusing?

"The fact that you can't stop smiling. You got lucky last night, didn't you?" Sam smiled at Dean again.

"Dude, seriously? You can't be asking me that. Alex is a respectable young woman and I will not degrade by talking about our sex life."

"So you totally did get laid!"

Dean looked over at Sam annoyed. "Whatever, bro."

Sam laughed. "I'm happy for you bro. Alex is great, you guys have been pining for each other far too long. It's good to see you too back together."

"Wow, Sam. Back together again? We were technically never together before, so there can be no again. Plus, I don' t know if this is us together, she does have a history of running away before getting too close, you know?"

"Well, I don't think she'll be going anywhere this time. And it's not like you're known for you ability to commit either."

Dean gave Sam a look that said it was time to drop the subject. Sam dropped down in his seat, with a pout playing on his mouth.


	4. Chapter 4

"Hey Dad," Alex said looking her father over.

"Alex? You're here."

"Of course I am." She grabbed his hand and held it in both her hands. "There's nowhere else I'd rather be." She gave him a small smile. "I rush over as soon as they called to say you were awake."

"Where's Dean?" He looked at her with scared eyes, as though seeing Dean was dire.

She knew exactly why he looked that way, "Dad, we need to talk about something." She looked away from him for a second. "I know that the demons that came to your house were looking for me." His eyes widened and his eyebrows shot up to his hairline. "Yes, I know demons were what attacked you."

"How do you know?" He looked more confused than ever.

"Dean told me…there was sulfur on the window ledge." She looked at him, trying to imagine his reaction at what she had to say next. "Dad…we found out why they were looking for me."

"Really…why were they looking for you?" She could tell he was trying to be calm and collected, but his eyes gave away the fear he felt.

Alex went into all the details, everything Dean had told her. When she was finished, they both sat in silence staring at each other. No words were spoken, but so much was said. Her father's look said we'll get through this together while hers said I know…it's not anyone's fault.

Alex broke the silence, by going over and turning on the radio on her father's bedside table. He looked over and smiled at her. "I didn't know hospital rooms have radios in them."

"They don't! I snuck this in." She smiled down at him. "Music has just always been so comforting." She chuckled obviously reminiscing about something.

"What?" Bobby asked.

"Remember when I was younger; every time I'd get sick and was confined to my bed, you use to move the radio to my bedside table. It used to play all day, and then at night when you would come to tuck me in, you would sing along with the radio until I fell asleep." She smiled at him and laughed a bit. "You have no idea how comforting that was, Dad."

"For both of us. It felt good to know I could make you feel better, even if just for a bit, and even though my voice isn't great."

Alex walked around the bed and sat down next to her father. She took of her shoes and lay down curled next to him, her head lightly resting on his chest. She looked up at him, tears in her eyes, "I love you Dad…you know that, right?" He nodded. "Don't ever scare me like this. I need you, okay?"

He chuckled. "You got it honey, and I love you too." He smiled down at her as he hugged his daughter closer to him.

The radio playing softly in the background, Alex began to sing along with Led Zeppelin's Bring It On Home. Soon, her father fell back into what she hoped was a peaceful sleep. She lay there in her father's arms feeling safer than she had in years. She was back home where she belonged. Smiling and thinking of the joy being with her father brought her; she too drifted into a peaceful sleep. She would worry about everything else tomorrow.

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She didn't quite know how long she'd been asleep but when she woke up Dean was sitting in the chair by the bed looking down at her and her father. She looked up to see her father was still sleeping. She shifted slowly out of his grasp, and sat up on the bed.

"How long have you been here?"

"A couple of hours. You'd think you got no sleep last night." He gave her his signature smirk.

"No I didn't." She got up and walked over to the window. "Maybe you could refresh my memory as to why?" She smiled at him before turning back to look out the window.

He chuckled at her response, then grabbed her hand and pulled her onto his lap. "Sugar, I'm sure you remember last night." He smirked at her again.

She laughed, "You can be so cheesy, Dean." Before she could continue, he was grabbing her face and kissing her. He was smiling widely at her as he pulled back.

"Umm….could you not grope my daughter in front of me please."

Alex jumped off Dean's lap at that sound of her father's voice. Dean looked as though he's just crapped his pants. Bobby sat up on the bed and looked at them sternly. Then he burst out laughing.

Alex and Dean stared at each other in confusion. Bobby laughed harder upon seeing their faces. "Oh please, as if I didn't know all along that you two had a thing for each other. I am a hunter…we're known for being observant, you know?"

Alex chuckled and went to sit next to her father. She kissed his forehead and smiled at him. "You think you're cute don't know?"

"Damn straight!" He smiled back warmly. "Well, now that we've uncovered that I'm not a complete idjit, I need to talk to Dean in private honey."

"Oh…okay. Um where's Sam?" She looked from Dean to her Dad and back to Dean.

"He's in the cafeteria with his laptop and some books doing research." His look indicated that he wasn't sure what Bobby wanted to talk about either.

"Okay, well you know where I'll be if you need me." She turns to give her father one last (warning) look before she walked out.

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Bobby and Dean watched Alex walk out of the room before they turned to each other.

"So, you gonna tell me to stay away from you daughter again. That I should know better, we Winchesters only cause trouble."

Dean let out a deep breath as he prepared himself for Bobby's resonating yes. He stared at the floor, refusing to look up. He waited for Bobby to speak, yet Bobby said nothing. They sat in silence for a while longer until Dean could feel Bobby's eyes beckoning him to look up.

When he did, he saw that Bobby's look was a mixture of anger and shame. He gave Bobby a confused look in return.

"Don't you get it boy. It doesn't matter if I want you to stay away. I…You…you two stayed away from each other for 10 years…and," he sighed, "fate brought you back together."

"Yea, I guess when you say it aloud it make sense."

"I need you to promise me something Dean. I need you to promise me that you will always watch out for her, like I've done for you and your brother. Her happiness is all I want for her; I need you to protect her."

The fear and sadness in his voice was evident. "Bobby, why are asking me this, now? For one, you should know that I have and will always protect and watch over her. Secondly, why are you talking like you won't be around much longer. You were beat up bad, yes, but you're not dying."

"I didn't say I was dying, you idijt. I just wanted to make sure someone would be looking out for my little girl, whenever I'm not around." If Bobby had been a kid, Dean was sure he would have followed with a resounding DUH!

"Oh," Dean said looking down. "That makes sense."

"So, you love her huh?" Bobby looked away from Dean as he asked the question. It seemed to Dean that Bobby didn't much want to discuss this topic yet he felt he had to.

"Um…what? Alex?" Dean too looked away, feeling somewhat embarrassed and nervous. When he didn't say anything he felt Bobby's eyes back on him. He looked up to meet Bobby's green eyes, so much like his Alex's. "You know I do Bobby."

Dean looked around uncomfortably. He chuckled, "Bobby, this is as big a chick moment as any! I feel like I'm talking to Sam."

"Boy, mind your tongue at me!"

Dean could tell that Bobby was holding back a chuckle. Both men were aware that this talking about their feelings thing was not common practice for either of them. That was more of a Sam thing.

"So," Dean began uncomfortably, "does this mean I have your blessing?" He gave Bobby his famous grin.

"Kid, your family already. This just makes it more legit." Bobby smile too. He'd always had a soft spot for Dean. The way that boy put his family before himself. He knew that Alex would hold top priority too. Hell he knew she'd be important to Sam too for sheer respect of Bobby and love of his brother.

"Thanks, Bobby. That means a lot. You know you've been like a father to me. I appreciate it more than you can imagine."

"I know kid."

Both men sat silence letting the words they spoken sink in to comfort them even if just for a moment. The silence stretch for a long time, it seemed they were both lost in their thoughts. They were interrupted by the door being opened suddenly. Sam and Alex burst in.


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

"We've got news." Sam was breathing hard, as if he'd run upstairs. Alex was also breathing hard. Sam went to sit in the other chair at the end of the bed to catch his breath, while Alex took a seat on her father's bed.

Dean looked from Alex to Sam waiting for one of them to speak then, but when neither did, he said, "Well, are ya'll going to share it or you just keeping it to yourselves?"

Alex smiled at this because Dean never had much patience.

Sam on the other hand got annoyed. Couldn't Dean see they'd just ran all the way here? Jeez. "Dude, a minute please," he said as he took a deep breath.

"Bro, you need to work out more if a light jog has you gasping for air." Dean smirked.

Sam grimaced, "Well, I was just trying to keep up with Alex."

At this confession Dean laughed. "You couldn't keep up with a girl." Dean saw Alex's eyes sharpening as anger washed over her face and he knew he should retract. "Granted it was Alex and she's no ordinary girl," he smiled at her, she scowled, "but still you're losing it bro."

Bobby who hadn't spoken at all since Sam and his daughter walked in started laughing. They all turned to look at him, not really understanding what was so funny.

"Dad, what's the punch line?"

"It's just…" He couldn't stop laughing. "They….and you….running…." Alex stared at her father confused. He finally was able to control his laughter and finish, "Didn't you say you finished a marathon race in less than 3 hrs?"

"Yea," Alex still see ms confused as to where her father was going with this.

"Well, I looked up average finishing times and the bulk of the participants last year finished in four to seven hours. There was no way Sam could catch up to you if you finished in under three. The thought of him chasing after you makes for a very funny image." He started laughing again and the others found themselves joining in.

"You ran a marathon?" Dean asked after they'd stopped laughing.

"Yea, most of the department did. I had the best time; although, all my years of training did give me a bit of an unfair advantage."

Dean laughed, she smiled. He knew Bobby believe that hunters should train their bodies as well as their minds, but that he wasn't as extreme about it as John Winchester had been. Yet, in the little time that Alex and John spent together, she'd picked up his training habit.

"Our news…." Sam began. It seemed they'd gotten off track. Everyone refocused back on Sam. "It seems that Castiel was wrong. Lucifer does need Alex but not to regain the power he lost during his fall. She's his vessel," he looked at Dean, "without her he won't have a body."

Alex continued, "The story says that when Lucifer rises he will destroy the world as we know it. There will be chaos and destruction, it will be a massacre. Cities will be set ablaze, lots of human loss. It seems that although the angels will fight against Lucifer, they care little about the loss of human life. However, being an angel and all, he needs a human vessel. Lucky me, I'm that vessel, but he needs my approval to take control of my body."

"Which we knew already, from what we learned from Castiel's vessel Jimmy." Sam cut in. "we were thinking of communicating with Cas to see what the vessel process is like. Maybe we can stop Lucifer by not allowing him to take his vessel.

Dean just stared at Sam as the words his brother had spoken were processing. It seemed Bobby was doing the same. The look on all their faces is one of fear. It's like they were all wondering if they could really survive this. They both seem to realize that Lucifer would probably be tracking and haunting Alex, which meant they were all in trouble.

Dean was the first to break the silence. "Ok." He sighed.

Sam sighed as well. "All we know now is that Alex is the key to this world for him and that we can't let him have her."

"Right." Dean swallowed the lump that was beginning to rise in his throat as he looked at Alex. She had no fear in her eyes anymore. All he saw was trust. Trust he was not sure he deserved, for he didn't know what to do or where to start.

She looked away from him then and looked at her father. "I want to ask the doctor if we could take you home. I'd feel better if you were safe at home."

"He can go home tomorrow. The doctor stopped by while you were sleeping." Dean said.

"Great, we can reinforce the protection around the house then. I think I'm going to stay here with Dad tonight. Sam and Dean you guys can go back home and continue the research and talk to Castiel." She got up to give her father a glass of water.

"Are you insane," Dean began. "There is no way you're staying here alone. We just discussed how we needed to protect you from demons and now Lucifer, and you want to stay here alone."

"Dean's right, baby." Bobby said gently to his daughter. "Maybe Sam should stay with me..."

"No, I'll stay." Dean cut in. "You and Sam are better at the whole research thing. You two go back to Bobby's and do what you're good at."

"Okay," Alex agreed. "But we're staying a bit longer, and we're going to get you some dinner before we head back home."

Dean smiled. "Okay."

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The car ride home was a quite one. Alex seemed to be lost in her thoughts. As if she was having a battle with herself. She looked worried, angry, and happy all at once, if that was possible.

"So I think as soon as we get to Bobby's we should get right down to research. There has to be something on Lucifer's Rising. Anything that can give us a clue as to what to expect."

"Yea, there has to be something." She gave me a slight smile, but I still feel like she wasn't all there.

As soon as we entered the house we headed straight for the living room and each grabbed some books and our laptops. After about an hour or so, I was beginning to get discouraged. But my thoughts were interrupted by Alex talking.

"Sam, I know you feel guilty about freeing Lucifer," She walked over to me. "But you can't keep blaming yourself. It'll cause you to lose focus and we need you in battle mode. I don't blame you for this, and neither should you. There were forces at play that forced the situation. They were the puppeteers and you their puppet."

"Still I had choices and I made all the wrong ones."

She sighed. "Sammy," she bit her bottom lip, a nervous habit of hers. "You should forgive yourself."

"How can I? My own brother blames me, you've seen the look of disappointment of his face. He doesn't trust me anymore."

"If that was the case he wouldn't trust you with me. Neither would my Dad. Sam, we love you, and regardless of the choices you've made in the past year, that will never change. And Dean, yea he may be disappointed, but in time things will go back to how they use to be. I mean, when you guys get past this tough hurdle, you'll both be better and stronger for it. The bond you and your brother have, can't be broken forever. Your two sides of a coin, not completely whole without the other. He'll come around, you'll see."

I got up then, and started to pace. "I'm not so sure."

She stood in front of me forcing me to stop my pacing. "I'm sure." Her eyes told me that she really believes that everything will be okay. She hugged me tight then. It was like she wasn't planning in letting go until I believed too. "I'm sure," she repeated.

I don't know how long we stood like that, but it felt like a long time. We broke apart at the sound of Castiel's voice. "Dean wouldn't like this," he said with a slight smirk.

Alex spun around and looked a Castiel. "I see you've been spending too much time with Dean, you picking up some of his smart ass remarks and the smirk." She smiled at the angel then.

Cas smiled back at her. "You rang."

"Yea, Lurch. We rang," Alex said with a smile. I laughed but Cas seemed confused. "You know like in the Addams family. Lurch always used to say, 'you rang.'"

"Right." Cas still looked as though he had no clue what we were talking about but pretended. "So what's going on? Where's Dean?"

"Dean's at the hospital with Bobby, "I said. "We need your help."

"So you heard too." Castiel interrupted. "I was on my way to tell you when you called upon me."

"Yea," Alex was the one that answered him. "So what's he gonna happen? What's the process? What does he need to do to possess me?"

"Well, let me begin by reminding you that angels are not demons; therefore they are not demons." He seemed a bit annoyed by Alex phrasing.

"Yea, whatever, so what happens?" Alex didn't seem to care that Cas was annoyed.

Cas glared at Alex but continued. "An angel needs a vessel because our true form can be a bit much plus it makes it easier to communicate with people. However, unlike demons, angels can't just hop in and out of people. It's not a possession, it's a connection. We control the body and mind, but we still know that person inside. It's like we become one with their memories and feelings. Every angel has only one person who can be their vessel. When that person dies another person is chosen. Vessels are chosen for specific angels based on their qualities, but the person must be willing to allow us to enter before we can do so. Without your permission, Lucifer can't enter your body."

"But how will he get my permission?"

"He'll stalk you out. He will attempt to communicate with you. There's many ways he can do so, I'm not sure how he will approach it."

"Why is it me?" Alex looked broken. One thing was knowing you were to be Satan's vessel another is to know you were selected specifically for him.

"I don't know," Cas began, "but there has to be a reason. You're special, there has to be something about you that makes you perfect for him. Like Jimmy, he's perfect for me because he is conservative, follows orders, and does what is needed and right."

"Well," I began hesitantly. "This is probably won't to get me punched in the face but I do see some similarities between you and Lucifer, Alex."

"What!" Oh yea, I was going to regret opening my mouth.


End file.
